Sex & the Bible

Reading: Leviticus 20

1. INTRODUCTIONThe Sex Drive
The most powerful instincts that operate in the human mind are:

The desire to live &

The sex drive.

There is of course nothing wrong with either of these. After all they were both programmed into all forms of life - human, animal and vegetable - by the Creator Himself. Were they not present, all life on this planet would soon cease to exist.
Sadly, however, both these divinely programmed urges have been corrupted and abused by mankind down through the centuries. This morning I shall endeavour to place before you the Bible teaching about sex; what is divinely permitted and, more importantly, what is not permitted.

The Sex Industry
Because the sex drive is so powerful and basic to human existence, information about sex is ever popular. The media has homed in on this and the sex industry - arguably one of the biggest - is a great money-spinner. Countless books, magazines, newspapers, radio broadcasts, TV shows, films, videos, tapes, compact disks and dedicated sex shops are linked to the sex industry: endlessly feeding the public with sex-oriented material. I do not need to elaborate on this fact; because everyone knows that sex is big business - all over the world!

High & Low Level Sex
Most people do not know that sex operates on two levels:

Both these levels, the spiritual and the physical are subject to certain divine regulations and boundaries within which certain acts are permitted and others forbidden.

Yahweh's Reaction to Illicit Sex
Another fact which comparatively few people realise is that the Almighty is currently reigning over all the earth. Though the majority of His judgements are postponed till the Day of Judgement, many are currently being witnessed in the lives of individuals, communities and countries around the globe. The blessings and curses listed in Deuteronomy chapter 28 and Matthew chapter 5 are coming true in the lives of millions of Jews and Gentiles. How true is the divine verdict "There is no peace, saith my God, to the wicked."

Isaiah 57:

15: For thus saith the high and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity, whose name is Holy; I dwell in the high and holy place, with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones...20: But the wicked are like the troubled sea, when it cannot rest, whose waters cast up mire and dirt.
21: There is no peace, saith my God, to the wicked.

Every government has its own laws concerning social behaviour: laws, which if not kept, attract punishment of some sort. Let us now consider the laws of the Creator concerning sexual behaviour. Make no mistake, those who violate the Almighty's laws, whether in ignorance or not, pay a heavy price.

2. DIVINE LAWS CONCERNING SEXUAL BEHAVIOURAdultery
Adultery is voluntary sexual intercourse between a married person and a person (married or not) who is not his/her spouse. Adultery is forbidden in the law of God. The seventh of the Ten Commandments says:

Exodus 20:

14: Thou shalt not commit adultery.

Leviticus 20:

10: And the man that committeth adultery with another man's wife, even he that committeth adultery with his neighbour's wife, the adulterer and the adulteress shall surely be put to death.

Prov:6:

32: But whoso committeth adultery with a woman lacketh understanding: he that doeth it destroyeth his own soul.

In spite of these divine warnings adultery is commonplace these days, especially in the affluent west. Nevertheless adulterers pay a heavy price for their sins; they destroy their own souls! For further details see our article on Adultery.

High level Spiritual Adultery
The worship of false gods is high level spiritual adultery; a sin millions commit every week. It was rampant in ancient Israel.

Jeremiah 3:

9: And it came to pass through the lightness of her whoredom, that she defiled the land, and committed adultery with stones and with stocks.

Jeremiah 23:

14: I have seen also in the prophets of Jerusalem an horrible thing: they commit adultery, and walk in lies: they strengthen also the hands of evildoers, that none doth return from his wickedness: they are all of them unto me as Sodom, and the inhabitants thereof as Gomorrah.

Ezekiel 23:

37: That they have committed adultery, and blood is in their hands, and with their idols have they committed adultery, and have also caused their sons, whom they bare unto me, to pass for them through the fire, to devour them. (See SBS comment concerning Idolatry.)

Hosea 4:

13: They sacrifice upon the tops of the mountains, and burn incense upon the hills, under oaks and poplars and elms, because the shadow thereof is good: therefore your daughters shall commit whoredom, and your spouses shall commit adultery.

Fornication / Prostitution Fornication is voluntary sexual intercourse between an unmarried couple. Prostitution (also called whoredom or harlotry in Scripture) is the commercialising of sex: sex at a price! What does the Bible say about fornication and prostitution?

1Cor:6:

18: Flee fornication. Every sin that a man doeth is without the body;
but he that committeth fornication sinneth against his own body.

Deut.23:

17: There shall be no whore of the daughters of Israel...

Ezek:16:

20: Moreover thou hast taken thy sons and thy daughters, whom thou hast borne unto me, and these hast thou sacrificed unto them to be devoured. Is this of thy whoredoms a small matter, 21: That thou hast slain my children, and delivered them to cause them to pass through the fire for them?

Homosexuality
A homosexual is a person who has sexual relations with another of his/her own sex. Male homosexuals are referred to as sodomites; whereas female homosexuals are termed lesbians. Homosexual behaviour is seldom openly condemned these days. In deed it will soon be unlawful in this country to classify homosexuals as 'sinners.' The term 'alternative lifestyle' is now the favourite description of the way homosexuals choose to live.

Homosexual rights are defended by famous barristers in the European Court! These legal experts will be horrified on the Day of Judgement to learn how misguided they had been in defending such behaviour. Homosexuals are winning their fight for public recognition. They are 'coming out' in their thousands; openly declaring their way of life. Homosexual flags, marches, concerts and magazines are now openly described as 'normal' to a bewildered public; which is often too scared to voice disapproval for fear of reprisal.

Homosexuality is a spiritual cancer that is slowly destroying human society. Soon it will be against the law, to speak out against homosexual behaviour. But what does the Bible say about homosexuality? Take careful note of the following Divine comments and instructions.

Lev. 18:

22: Thou shalt not lie with mankind, as with womankind: it is abomination...

Deut. 23:

17: There shall be no whore of the daughters of Israel, nor a sodomite of the sons of Israel.

Genesis 13:

13: But the men of Sodom were wicked and sinners before the LORD exceedingly.

Genesis 18:

20: And the LORD said, Because the cry of Sodom and Gomorrah is great, and because their sin is very grievous.

1Kings 14:

24: And there were also sodomites in the land: and they did according to all the abominations of the nations which the LORD cast out before the children of Israel.

Romans 1:

18: For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness;
19: Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto them. 20: For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse: 21: Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. 22: Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools, 23: And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things.24: Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves:
25: Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever. Amen.
26: For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections: for even their women did change the natural use into that which is against nature:
27: And likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust one toward another; men with men working that which is unseemly, and receiving in themselves that recompence of their error which was meet.
28: And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient;
29: Being filled with all unrighteousness, fornication, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, debate, deceit, malignity; whisperers,
30: Backbiters, haters of God, despiteful, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents,
31: Without understanding, covenantbreakers, without natural affection, implacable, unmerciful: 32: Who knowing the judgment of God, that they which commit such things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but have pleasure in them that do them.

13 If a man also lie with mankind, as he lieth with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination: they shall surely be put to death; their blood shall be upon them.

The account of Sodom's destruction is given in the Bible as a stern warning about the end results awaiting homosexuals. It would be folly of the worst kind to ignore the Bible warning as to the fate of homosexuals who persist in their sins. I quote a few key verses from the account in Genesis.

Genesis 13:

13 But the men of Sodom were wicked and sinners before the LORD exceedingly.

Genesis 18:

20 And the LORD said, Because the cry of Sodom and Gomorrah is great, and because their sin is very grievous.

Genesis 19:

23 The sun was risen upon the earth when Lot entered into Zoar.
24: Then the LORD rained upon Sodom and upon Gomorrah brimstone and fire from the LORD out of heaven;
25: And he overthrew those cities, and all the plain, and all the inhabitants of the cities, and that which grew upon the ground.

Rape
According to the Scriptures, 'rape' is an extremely serious sin. Rape is likened to murder and it attracts the death penalty!

Deut.22:

25 ... if a man find a betrothed damsel in the field, and the man force her, and lie with her: then the man only that lay with her shall die:
26: But unto the damsel thou shalt do nothing; there is in the damsel no sin worthy of death: for as when a man riseth against his neighbour, and slayeth him, even so is this matter:
27: For he found her in the field, and the betrothed damsel cried, and there was none to save her.

Incest
Incest is fornication (sexual relations) between very close relatives: father and daughter, mother and son, brother and sister etc.

1Cor. 5:

1 It is reported commonly that there is fornication among you, and such fornication as is not so much as named among the Gentiles, that one should have his father's wife.

Bestiality

Lev. 20:

15 And if a man lie with a beast, he shall surely be put to death: and ye shall slay the beast.
16: And if a woman approach unto any beast, and lie down thereto, thou shalt kill the woman, and the beast: they shall surely be put to death; their blood shall be upon them.

Nudity
Nakedness is fashionable these days. In fact some people say that 'if you've got a beautiful body - flaunt it: show it of, pose, parade, be photographed and show the world how beautiful you are.' What does the Most High tell us in His Word about nakedness?

Genesis 2:

25 And they were both naked, the man and his wife, and were not ashamed...

Genesis 3:

7: And the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves aprons.

Gen:3:

10 And he said, I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself.
11: And he said, Who told thee that thou wast naked? Hast thou eaten of the tree, whereof I commanded thee that thou shouldest not eat? ...

Gen:9:

22: And Ham, the father of Canaan, saw the nakedness of his father, and told his two brethren without.
23: And Shem and Japheth took a garment, and laid it upon both their shoulders, and went backward, and covered the nakedness of their father; and their faces were backward, and they saw not their father's nakedness.

17 And if a man shall take his sister, his father's daughter, or his mother's daughter, and see her nakedness, and she see his nakedness; it is a wicked thing; and they shall be cut off in the sight of their people: he hath uncovered his sister's nakedness; he shall bear his iniquity.

Hab.2:15

Woe unto him that giveth his neighbour drink, that puttest thy bottle to him, and makest him drunken also, that thou mayest look on their nakedness!

3. BIBLE EXAMPLESSodom

Gen. 19:

14 And Lot went out, and spake unto his sons in law, which married his daughters, and said, Up, get you out of this place; for the LORD will destroy this city. But he seemed as one that mocked unto his sons in law.
15: And when the morning arose, then the angels hastened Lot, saying, Arise, take thy wife, and thy two daughters, which are here; lest thou be consumed in the iniquity of the city...

Gen:19:

24: Then the LORD rained upon Sodom and upon Gomorrah brimstone and fire from the LORD out of heaven...

Gen:19:

28 And he looked toward Sodom and Gomorrah, and toward all the land of the plain, and beheld, and, lo, the smoke of the country went up as the smoke of a furnace.

Jude 1:

7: Even as Sodom and Gomorrha, and the cities about them in like manner, giving themselves over to fornication, and going after strange flesh, are set forth for an example, suffering the vengeance of eternal fire.

Joseph
Though exposed to severe temptation, the young man Joseph held to the commandment of God which said: Thou shalt not commit adultery. Alas he was falsely accused of attempted rape and imprisoned.
Because of his faithfulness, God rescued Joseph and he became Prime Minister of Egypt.

Gen:39:

14 That she called unto the men of her house, and spake unto them, saying, See, he hath brought in an Hebrew unto us to mock us; he came in unto me to lie with me, and I cried with a loud voice.

King David
King David, however, fell before temptation. He sinned greviously; and though he repented he paid a heavy price.

2 Samuel 11:

2: And it came to pass in an eveningtide, that David arose from off his bed, and walked upon the roof of the king's house: and from the roof he saw a woman washing herself; and the woman was very beautiful to look upon.
3: And David sent and enquired after the woman. And one said, Is not this Bath-sheba, the daughter of Eliam, the wife of Uriah the Hittite?

1Cor. 6:

9 Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind.

4. TRUE BELIEVERS MUST SPEAK OUT
This is a day when true believers in the God of Abraham, Isaac and Israel must speak out. To remain silent is not an option. We all know that just as in the days of Noah and Lot, illicit sex has become very fashionable; and in many countries is now lawful. This means that anyone speaking out against illicit sex could become a target for ridicule and abuse: let alone risking the danger of being taken to court. It's a sad, sad situation. Our world is morally sick. The tragedy is that it doesn't know it. The true believer's choice is to keep his/her mouth shut and by his/her silence condone sin; or to speak out. What is the Christian to do? The answer is obvious. We must speak out against blatant sin. Though we have absolutely no desire to anger people; we would anger the Almighty God far more if we kept silent in a day such as this. For the fact remains that God Almighty is extremely angry at man's blatant refusal to obey His commandments and fearsome punishments are just around the corner.

The Watchman

Ezekiel 33:

7: So thou, O son of man, I have set thee a watchman unto the house of Israel; therefore thou shalt hear the word at my mouth, and warn them from me.8: When I say unto the wicked, O wicked man, thou shalt surely die; if thou dost not speak to warn the wicked from his way, that wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at thine hand.
9: Nevertheless, if thou warn the wicked of his way to turn from it; if he do not turn from his way, he shall die in his iniquity; but thou hast delivered thy soul.

If you want to escape punishment then repent and forsake your sins before it is too late! Meanwhile, if you continue in sin, this verdict will come alive in your life:

There is no peace, saith my God, to the wicked. (Isa.57:21)

4. SUMMARY

Illicit sex is popular. The booming sex industry is nourished by it.

Illicit sex has become acceptable to many governments. Is it any wonder that adultery, fornication, homosexuality, incest, rape etc. are commonplace? Though the vast majority of people are secretly upset when these sins invade their families, they are being brain-washed by the media to look upon these sins as normal, and therefore acceptable, human behaviour.

Jehovah's reaction to illicit sex is, however, unchanged. As in the days of Noah and Sodom, He still abhors these sins. Though He gives sinners time to repent and change their ways, the Almighty will never pardon blatant sin. He is a Holy King and will repay, if not in this day, then on the Day of Judgement.

This is a time for true believers in the Creator, the Holy One of Israel, to speak out. The blood of many will be on our hands if we remain silent.

My prayer is that you will take this message to heart and also help to warn others.